The latest demographics news from The Texas Tribune.
Precious days are dwindling away in the first-called special session of the state legislature, leading to speculation that one of the most divisive issues of the regular and special session, the “sanctuary cities” legislation, may not make the deadline. Full Story
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An Everybody-in-the-Pool effort on what's left to do in the special session, Ramshaw on a doozy of a congressional race shaping up, Aguilar on the debate over sanctuary cities and other immigration proposals, M. Smith on the state's used-up Rainy Day Fund, Grissom on efforts to kick the special interests out of an insurance fight, Dehn and Tan on whether the special session helps or hurts the governor's national ambitions, Galbraith and KUT Radio team up for a series on the long-term outlook for Central Texas water, Aaronson on government attempts to balance openness and privacy with data releases, yours truly on Amazon's run at a sales tax break, and Hamilton on an ethnic gap in higher education: The best of our best from June 20 to 24, 2011. Full Story
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Two Republican boosters have circulated a memo urging business owners to contact lawmakers to encourage them to vote against the “sanctuary cities” bills pending in committee. Full Story
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Not every crowd is an adoring crowd. Gov. Rick Perry got a reality check in San Antonio this week. Full Story
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A decision on the whether to advance the state’s pending “sanctuary cities” legislation will not be made until Monday, leaving less time for lawmakers to consider the bills before Wednesday’s special session deadline. Full Story
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Texas Gov. Rick Perry made no mention of the federal government’s overreach or the violence he says is spilling across the state’s border during a brief and tense public appearance today before hundreds of Latino elected officials. Full Story
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Lawmakers to lobbyists: Butt out of TWIA fight. Full Story
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Tearful testimony from students brought to the country illegally and a new ICE directive that stresses discretionary enforcement has raised more concerns over the state's pending "sanctuary cities" legislation. Full Story
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The Tribune counts down to the end of the special session with updates on where the major issues added to the agenda by Gov. Rick Perry stand. Full Story
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Which groups in Texas believe most strongly that their members of Congress don't represent people "like them"? Liberal and moderate whites. Full Story
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Like parents threatening to withhold allowance from a misbehaving child, proponents of Senate Bill 9 are warning local authorities across the state: Comply or face the fiscal consequences. Full Story
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Want a quick recap of some of the happenings this week in the Texas Legislature? We've made it easier for you with our weekly video rundown of the action under the dome. Full Story
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Aaronson and Murphy visualize what happened to the nearly 5,800 bills introduced in the 82nd Lege, Aaronson, Hasson and Swicegood interactively recap the budget battle, Aguliar on the surge in illegal re-entry cases prosecuted by the Obama administration, Galbraith on a coal plant that wants a water deal from the LCRA, Grissom interviews a man wrongly imprisoned and nearly executed — twice, Hamilton on a controversial UT regent who wants a do-over in the debate over higher ed reform, Ramshaw on the continuing fight over pre-abortion sonograms, Root on Rick Perry's newsmaking trip to NYC and M. Smith on whether cash-strapped school districts will raise taxes: The best of our best content from June 13 to 17, 2011. Full Story
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The controversial Secure Communities initiative, aimed at deporting criminal aliens but criticized for removing mostly minor offenders of lesser crimes, may undergo considerable changes, according to the director of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. Full Story
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One of the most emotional and controversial issues of the year centered around the sanctuary cities bil. Senate Democrats managed to block SB 9 during the regular session, but it's found a new life in the special session. Behind the scenes, some question whether the Democrats are now reaping what they sowed when one of their members pushed the Legislature into overtime. Full Story
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Likely voters in Texas approve of President Barack Obama almost as much as they approve of Gov. Rick Perry, according to the third and final release of poll results from the Texas Lyceum, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group of civic leaders. Full Story
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State Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, speaks to a crowd protesting the sanctuary cities bill at a rally held by the Reform Immigration for Texas Alliance at the Texas Capitol. Full Story
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On this week's episode, Reeve, Julian, Morgan and Jim discuss Texas Monthly's list of the best and worst legislators, education and immigration in the special session, and Gov. Rick Perry's still-hypothetical presidential bid. Full Story
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Texans are hammering away at Barack Obama for failing to secure our borders and for refusing to put forward a comprehensive immigration-reform plan, but the number of federal prosecutions for "illegal re-entry" has quietly skyrocketed under his administration. Full Story
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Texas peace officers will be allowed to inquire into the immigration status of any person arrested or legally detained under legislation passed by the Texas Senate early Wednesday morning. Full Story